"Man up...? You mean I have to become a body builder?!" Takashi imagined himself lifting a 200 pound weight with no effort with big bulging muscles and shook his head. "I can't do that... especially in Fukazawa-san's body... I don't want to misshapen her body anymore than I already did..." Takashi blushed as he said those words.

Takashi's face darkened in horror as he imagined himself suspended in air failing 200 miles an hour towards the cold, hard ground. "Please don't Mizuki-san!" Takashi begged, his eyes beginning to tear all over again.

Then, the bell rang.

Takashi's heart skipped a beat. "I didn't even get to eat my lunch..." He felt like he could cry all over again as he jumped to a standing position. "I-I'll see you later, Mizuki-san!" And with that, he hurried to class.

ღ February 14: Nighttime

Ringo waited alone in the dark. She watched the unfortunate children chattering nervously to each other, attracted by the rumor of the love potion. She wasn't caring enough to warn them. Her only concern right now was to speak to the woman she heard in her head earlier that day.

"You won't get to talk to Izanami. She can sense your energy. She knows exactly why you're here."

Ringo turned to Naomi who was leaning against a tree, her long, wavy, bubblegum pink hair swaying lightly with the breeze.

"It's futile. Don't even try. There's only one way and one way only to get your body back. She's not the one to compromise so easily, either."

~~~

A familiar face was there as well. He rolled his wheelchair forward, his expression unreadable.

"This system is a piece of crap but you've got no choice but to follow through. She's a power completely out of this world. Trust me." Naomi's turned her face away as she bit her lip. "Not even I can do it..." She quickly shot back to her, her face back to full composure. "Now you know, I've got no more business with you. Go home." And with that, she vanished into a pool of sparkles.

Tch... I didn't get anything done... Ringo closed her eyes. I can't approach this directly. I need to be concealed and find a way back to my body as soon as possible. First, I need to gather as much information about the situation and information surrounding this 'love potion'.

Her mind shot back to the scene with her and Kotomi. Kaichou is surprisingly knowledgeable about this case. Suspicious, but if I can't gain information through the primary source, I must go through the secondary sources around me. And with this, she walked back to her dorm.

~~~

ღ February 15: Before School

Kotomi was on her way to the student council meeting room where she noticed a familiar face waiting beside her door.

"We need to talk."

~~~

Takashi touched his face, his cheeks still blazing hot as he recalled the moments before in the morning. "T-This is the first time I've bathed in Fukazawa-san's body..." He covered his face in embarrassment as blood began to drip from his nose. "I hope she find out..." His movements began to wobble as he made his way to his classroom building.

"Hey! You don't learn do you? Pervert?" Mizuki gave Takashi an embarrassed look, his face just as red. "Anyways? Have you seen a cute navy haired guy that looks kinda like this stupid shota body I'm in? Well it doesn't matter if you do see him, but if you do, tell me!"

"And... d-don't you find going to the bathroom kinda inconvenient though? I mean, I'm still in a boy's body.. while you're..."

Takashi took a moment to recall whether or not he saw a face familiar to the one he was talking to right now. He shook his head, verifying he hasn't. "I'll see what I can do, since Mizuki-san is helping me as well!"

After hearing the sentences after, he felt the blood rush to his cheeks again. "T-Truthfully, I've been avoiding going to the restrooms here at school and at her dorm, I close my eyes whenever I go..." A shy smile appeared on his face as he recalled the moments of the past day. "It took me 30 minutes just to put on the uniform, I had to look up how online... and the panties that she wears..." He felt so embarrassed and happy at the same time that he could get eaten by lions right now and wouldn't care.

"O-Oh, but to repay you, I'll help you and your relationship with Kaoru-san! S-Since Fukazawa-san... doesn't want to see me..."

~~~

Spoiler Alert! Click to show or hide

"Everything about the love potion?" Kotomi repeated the words. The two were alone in the student council room and sat face to face in a small desk.

"You have confirmed to me that you are student council president, Kotomi Ainamo, meaning that although you have not xxx, you understand the current position I am in. Also, you are notorious for loving rumors and gossiping around the school."

"!!!! No, that... um..." Kotomi flushed slightly as her head tilted downward in embarrassment. "I only know that there is a woman who hands people love potions at midnight at the back of the school. There are people who have claimed that they fell deeply in love with their significant other after using the love potion but any details of that is hazy, according to their accounts. And I don't know why I'm special... she said it's because I'm the student council president..."

Ringo closed her eyes. We're at a standstill. There is no further information about the love potion that I can gain other than the information I already know. It's as if the only option to gaining back my body is... Ringo suddenly stood up. "Kaichou, please assist me in finding a way past this system and gaining my body back."

"No, please don't. I wanna kill that stupid boy! Relationship? Ha, what relationship? I always, always hated him." Mizuki told Takashi, his eyes fulled with anger and fiery. He quickly subdued his anger and sighed. "You're not trying enough! Are you even serious about her? If so, push it some more!"
Kaoru wasn't far away, eavesdropping in fact and heard everything. "...I guess that's how it is." He looked down, his bangs covering his eyes, only a grim smile could be seen. He walked off, deciding there was absolutely nothing he could do to get his brother to appreciate him.

"I am! But... but..." Takashi slumped, his eyes filling with tears once again. "She's angry at me. She probably doesn't want to see me ever again. After what I did to her, there's nothing I can do to make it up to her..." He wiped his tears with his fingertips. "Even if I did push harder, I don't want to upset her any more by her seeing me. I don't think there's anything I can do." He turned to Mizuki. "Do you really hate your younger brother that much...? I feel really bad for him..."

~~~

Kotomi jumped in her seat at the sudden proclamation. "I-I don't mind helping you! But how...? I can't even go out at night...My parents won't let me..."

Ringo crossed her arms as she breathed in and out. "We'll need to find information about the person who gives out the love potion. I'll need to speak with someone who has spoken face to face with them directly. Name, appearance, anything that could help identify this person."

"Then, wouldn't Itou-san know since he--"

"I am not going to converse with him." Ringo declared and walked out. "We'll need to look for someone who has xxx. It won't be easy since there is no telling who has switched and who has not." By now the two were out of the building and in front of the school. "It would be easier to ask teachers individually which students' behavior has changed from the last day, but they won't see it accurate if it has only been for one day.

"Then you shouldn't have made a mess you know you couldn't clean up..." Mizuki muttered, his voice quavering with conflicted emotions. "And don't feel bad for him! He's..." Mizuki stopped mid-sentence and seemed to reminisce about something. He sighed and put his hands behind his head.

"We've go to fix this somehow... at this point, Fukazawa-san won't come to love you. And I will never come to love my brother, that's for sure. So... we have to find a solution to this problem ourselves. I refuse to stay in this body. Are you with me, Itou-kun? You can't live the rest of your life just crying, you know? You're a man, so it's time to show it. "

Kotomi blushed and immediately turned the other direction. "I-I mean, if you really were a guy... you have the personality that would be really popular with girls..."

"I... never expected something like the would happen..." Takashi held his hands together. "I thought if I gave her the potion, she would love me... not hate me..." He turned to Takashi, all sense of hope in him lost. "Is there really another way out?"

"Kotomi-chan~!" Sayuri waved and skipped right to Kotomi. "Good morning! And... Hmm? Who's this?" Sayuri turned her head at the new face.

"Ah, it's a friend of mine--" Suddenly she grabbed both of her shoulders. "Sayuri, you didn't xxx yet, right? You met the girl who gives you the potion, right? Please tell us everything you know about her!"

"If there's a will... there's a way!" I hope. "We just got to find the way! It's not like moping around and crying will bring the solution here! We gotta find it, of course." Mizuki told Takashi, half trying to convince him and half trying convince himself. It was a scary thought though... what if they were stuck like this forever? It'd be the worse...!

Sayuri smiled, her whole face softening. "Yes, she is a goddess. She gave me the courage to confess to him." She held up the love potion for the two to see. "I don't have much time, I have to give this to him, wish me good luck, ok?"

"This is the only way my love will reach him." She shook off Kotomi's grasped. "This may be the only chance I have. I have to make it count. I'm sorry I can't help you, but the least I can do is give you her name."

Kotomi just stared baffled at her friend. She felt she needed to stop her, but she wasn't sure if that was the right thing anymore. Her best friend seemed so determined to do this fully knowing what she was getting herself into. "What's... her name?"

"Izanami." And with that, she left the two with confidence.

"... What do you think we should do, then?" Takashi said, making circles on the ground with his foot. "Should we beg the women who gives the love potion to change us back? Maybe if we begged hard enough, she'll pity us to grant out wish..."

"No way, you'll look like fools." An all too familiar voice made Mizuki cringe. It was his own voice from his real body. Making this guy be...
"Ha? So what do you suggest, mr. smarty-pants?" Mizuki turned around and stared awkwardly at his own figure towering over him. "And so you're back, what a parasite."
Kaoru ignored that last remark and looked over to Takashi. "I'm guessing you're not Fukazawa-san... but I suggest we should research more about this. Google it, look it up in the library... you get what I mean?"

The sound of the bell echoed throughout the campus, signaling everyone to go to their homerooms.

"I guess that's homeroom. Meet me at the Student Council room at lunch, we can discuss what to do next in there." She gave a weary smile and a wave before walking to her class.

"Yeah." Ringo replied. She was about to return to her homeroom herself before she found a group of angry looking nerds walking at her direction.

"Le-Let's meet up at the Computer Lab, I guess--" He gasped as he caught the group hovering around his 'body'. He looked around nervously and started to shake. "Oh no... I was careless. I completely forgot... all about my fanclub."

"Hey Takashi." A nerd with a nasal sounding voice and horrid breath addressed. "Just because you're president, you think you can do whatever you want?!"

"I don't understand what you're talking about." Ringo replied. She was about to walk away, but the group encircled her, leaving her no room to escape.

"Don't play dumb! You're our president, the president of the Rabu Rabu Ringo club, and you dared to put a hand on her yesterday? And now you're playing around with the student president!"

The other club members agreed with detest and aggression in their voices.

"F-Fukazawa-san..." Takashi began to shake uncontrollably. "They're angry at her because they think it's me. It's my fault. I'm such an awful person....." He covered his eyes so the two wouldn't see him crying.